Part 3
"It was gross, Uncle Nick. There was blood everywhere."
"Everywhere?" he grinned. "It couldn't have been that bad." Nick was tying up the last of the lines, getting the boat ready to go. The wind was out of the west and it swept his sandy colored hair across his eyes. Even at forty, he still had the same carefree look he'd carried all his life. His hair was darker now, and streaked with bits of gray instead of blonde, but he had never lost his exuberance or that smile that used to slay women on a daily basis.
"But it was," she rolled her eyes. "It was so disgusting, and Joanie laughed at me."
"Friends are good to have, huh Nikki?" he laughed, remembering all the times the other guys had ragged on him for one thing or another. So tell me all about this lab you did. Why blood? Sounds kinda drastic for a school assignment."
"It was so disgusting." She rolled her eyes again, knotting off the last line. "I still don't see why I have to know my blood type anyway. I mean, that's what doctors are for, right? Besides, it's like I told Joanie, when I'm famous I won't have to bother with all that stuff."
She prattled on and on, not realizing that Nick had stopped what he was doing and was standing perfectly still, watching her every move. She really was a beautiful girl, tall and graceful, with a dancer's body and a sparkling personality that would carry her far in the entertainment business. With all that going for her, and her father's innate business sense that she'd surely inherited, there was no way to lose.
"Uncle Nick? Hello?" She laughed as Nick did a double take, suddenly realizing that she'd been talking to him. "Where were you, Mars?"
"Umm, no, just thinking." He smiled as she laughed at his expense. "Go tell the others we're ready, and we'll head on out."
"Okay!" Nikki bounced up the dock to the house, her long blonde hair blowing in the Florida breeze.
Blood type … why now? And why should that bother him at this late date? It had never been an issue; it had never been mentioned again, just like he'd asked. That one night with Becca Richardson may have haunted his dreams for the last eighteen years, but through sheer will power he'd managed to not let it interfere with either his life or hers and Kevin's. He was fairly certain that Becca would be horrified to know how many times he'd awakened from dreams of that one night, how many times he'd pictured her face, her body, as he sought relief at the touch of his own hand.
"Yo! Earth to Kaos!" Kevin grinned, thwapping Nick on the back of the head. "Let's go, if we're going today, man."
"Daddy, stop it!" Nikki giggled. "I was telling Uncle Nick about my lab yesterday, and I think he's as disgusted as I was."
"You never did tell us about it, Nikki. What's all the secrecy?"
"No secret, daddy, it was just gross, that's all."
Becca laughed, going down below to store the food. "Why, sweetie, did they make you dissect a frog? That was always my personal favorite."
"Mooooooommm!" she moaned. "You never take me seriously," she pouted. "At least Uncle Nick understands me."
"I'm sorry, baby," Becca laughed, poking her head up from below. "So what was this gross experiment you had to do?"
"It was blood, mom, that's what I was explaining to Uncle Nick. He hates blood as much as I do."
Kevin frowned. "Nikki, why would a school experiment involve blood?"
Once again, with all the patience of a teenager, she rolled her eyes. "They made us prick our fingers and smear our blood all over a slide. They taught us how to check our own blood type."
Becca dropped the tray of vegetables all over the floor of the galley. "What?" she whispered.
"See daddy? I told you it was disgusting, even mom is grossed out."
Nick kept his eyes on the task at hand, afraid to look at either Becca or Kevin for fear he'd give away exactly what he was thinking. In minutes they were on their way out into the open water, the sound of the engines and the water slapping at the hull of the boat and drowning out the pounding of his heart. Forty-five minutes later they'd dropped anchor off one of Nick's favorite islands, and he sat on deck watching Kevin and Nikki as they snorkeled.
"Hey," Becca said softly, dropping into a deck chair next to Nick.
"You okay?" he asked, never taking his eyes off the water.
"Sure. No reason not to be."
"Of course not," he agreed. "No reason to be upset that your daughter found out her blood type yesterday. Or is there?" he finally turned to look at Becca's profile.
"No, Nick. No reason at all," she said with false confidence.
"Then you already know her blood type?" he persisted.
"Nick, don't." Becca's voice was hushed, a thin line of terror just beneath the surface.
"What don't you want me to know, Bec?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
Damn she was stubborn. "I think you do, Becca. Does Nikki know I'm her father?"
Becca caught her breath, wrapping her arms protectively around herself.
"More importantly, does Kevin?" Nick whispered.
"Nick, don't do this." Becca turned an anguished look to Nick, pleading with her eyes for him to stop.
"How long have you known?" Nick whispered.
"I don't know, Nick." She turned back to watch Kevin and Nikki, her heart heavy. The moment she'd dreaded for the past eighteen years was here and there was no turning back.
"What do you mean, you don't know? Surely-"
"There was no reason to find out. Nikki is healthy, always has been. And you said it yourself, Nick, it never happened."
"That was then, Bec. That was before you married Kevin and announced your pregnancy all in one grand gesture. That was before I became Nikki's godfather and watched her grow up. Damn it, Bec, you know how like me she is?"
"No, Nick-"
"Yes, Becca. She is, whether you choose to ignore it or not. Until today I'd managed to ignore it, too."
"I can't let this come out now, Nick," she whispered. "It will kill Kevin."
"And it would be better to wait dramatically like they do in the movies? Until she needs blood and neither of you can donate? Wouldn't that be special, Bec. I can see it now, 'by the way Kevin, we need to call Nick, after all he's her real father'."
"Stop it," she begged tearfully. "Please?"
"What's your blood type, Bec?"
"O positive," she whispered. "So is Kevin's."
"Cool," he said with a sneer. "Mine's not. But then I think you suspected that, didn't you?"
Becca blanched as she saw Kevin and Nikki returning to the boat, each carrying their dinner: fat, juicy, Florida lobsters.
"Nick, please? Not tonight?"
Nick relented at the fear in Becca's eyes. "No, baby, not tonight. But this is far from over."